Improvement in apparatus for drying hard sugar



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 W. R. ELMENHORST. APPARATUS FOR DRYING HARD SUGAR.

Patented Ja.n.30,1877.

N-PETERS PHOTO-LlTHOGRAPI-XER WASHINGTON. D C

- rows on platformcars.

'rn STATES WALTER R. ELMENHORST, OF JERSEY CITY, JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO F.O. MATTHIESSEN AND WIEOHERS SUGARREFINING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN APPARATUS FOR DRYING HARD SUGAR.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 186,816, dated January30,1877; application filed December 11, 1876.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER. R. ELMEN- HORST, of Jersey City, New Jersey,have invented certain Improvements in Apparatus for Drying Hard Sugar,of which the following is a specification My improvements relatetodevices for facili ta-ting the conduct of an improved process which Ihave devised for drying hard sugar.

My invention consists, primarily, of a system of portable frames orhand-barrows of like shape and dimensions, and of such construction thateach barrow affords support for a series of sugar slabs arrangedflatwise at short distances from each other, and ofachamber suppliedwith hot or cold air, or both, having outlets, upon which thehand-barrows fit, and by means of which, when a number of barrows areplaced singly over a correspondin g number of outlets, or when differentseries of barrows are piled one above another, and placed over acorresponding series of outlets, hot or cold blasts of air dischargedfrom the air-chamber are forced directly across the sides of the sugarslabs supported in the barrows.

My invention also includes the arrangement of my air-chambers on orbeneath the floor of the room in which the drying operation isconducted, and the connection of such chambers with conduits providedwith suitable valves for regulating the admission into the chambers ofhot and cold air.

The outlets for the reception of the barrows are openings in the top ofthe air-chamber, or, in other words, in the floor of the drying-room andI arrange tramways on the floor of the drying-room in suitable proximityto the openings, to facilitate the transportation of the bar- I alsoprovide coversfor closing the air-chamber outlets when they are not inuse.

The accompanying drawings are as follows:

Figure l is a view of the floor of my dryingroom, exhibiting thearrangement of the outlets from three parallel air-chambers, and alsoshowing some of the barrows in position, and some of the outlets closedby their covers. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section through theline at w on Fig. 1, showing the manner in which the barrows may bepiled one above the other. Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical sectionthrough the line 3 :1 on Fig. 1, showing the interior construction ofthe barrows for supporting the sugar slabs, and exhibiting across-section of the air-supply conduits.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the I floor of the drying-room,and B B B three air-chambers, which are alike in construction, eachchamber being formed of the space between two adjacent floor-beams, a a,by ceiling across the under edges of the floor-beams. The opposite endsof the air-chambers are each provided with a slide-valve, U, by whichcommunication is opened or closed between them and the air-supplypassages or conduits D and D. The top of each air-chamber has a seriesof openings, 1) b b b,through which air forced into the chamber escapesin an upward direction. A rectangular frame or hand-barrow, E, fits overeach one of the openings b, and the sides and ends of this frameconstitute the boundary-walls of a vertical passage in continuation ofthe opening I). The barrows E are provided at each end with theprojecting handles 0, to facilitate transportation. These hand-barrowsare intended to be piled in indefinite series, one above another, thebottom one of each series being placed over one of the openings 1). Theinner side walls of each barrow are provided with shoulders f and acentral bar, f to afford bearings for the edges of the sugar slabs, andparallel bars f are arranged across the bottom of the barrows, to catchthe lower edges of the slabs, and thus prevent the slabs from fallingthrough the barrow in case they are not held by their principal bearingsf and J. The parallel bars f are at a sufficient distance beneath thebearings f and f to be out of contact with the sugar slabs resting uponthose bearings, the bars f being guard-bars, provided for the purpose ofsupporting the sugar only in the event of the accidental dislodgment ofthe slabs from their bearings f and f. The sugar slabs h arewedgeshaped, and are supported by their edges, as shown in Fig. 3.

It will be seen that by setting in slabs at slight distances from eachother, as shown at 2', Figs. 1 and 2, a series of narrow passages areformed, and that currents of air discharged from the air-cham ber arecompelled to pass through the spaces between the slabs.

In operation, each barrow is carried to the place where the sugar slabsare first made ready for drying, and filled with slabs, and thentransported to the drying apparatus, and placed over one of the outletsb of one of the air-chambers, B, B, or B, or upon the top of a barrowpreviously so placed. For convenience in transporting the barrows, Iprovide tramwaysjj, upon which small platform-cars can be run. One ofthese cars, having been loaded with barrows, is stopped on the tramwayopposite the end of one of the air-chambers. The barrows are then easilytaken from the car and carried and placed over the adjacent outlets. Iprovide a sufficient number of covers, it, to close the outlets whenthey are not required for the reception of barrows. When the barrowshave been placed in position over the outlets, one of the valves 0 isopened, and hot or cold air is forced into the chamber and upwardthrough the spaces between the sugar slabs hanging in the barrows. Whenthe drying operation is completed, the barrows are collected, placedupon a car, and removed from the drying-room.

The advantages which my apparatus aifords are as follows First, greatconvenience and economy in handling the sugar preparatory to and duringthe drying operation; secondly, a material hastening of the dryingoperation, owing to the subjection of the sugar slabs to the directaction of currents of air forced across their surfaces. I claim as myinvention, in an apparatus for drying sugar slabs- 1. The portable frameor hand-barrow E,

provided with the shoulders f and f and with the projecting handles 0,as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a frame or hand-barrow, substantially such as described, theparallel guard-bars f as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The air-chamber B, situated upon or beneath the floor of thedrying-room, provided with one or more outlets, b, and with valves 0 G,for opening and closing communication between the air-chamber and theair-supply passages D D.

4. A drying-room for drying hard sugar, having tramways arranged uponits floor in convenient proximity to a series of openings in its floor,communicating with an air chamber or chambers beneath the floor, suchchambers being connected with an air-supply conduit or conduits,provided with valves for regulating the admission into the air-chambersof hot or cold air, substantially as described.

W. R. ELMENHORST.

Witnesses:

' RoBT. MOELLER,

GooN WITZUBEN.

